Never Again
by MeSarcasticNever
Summary: Max comes back one night, only to find the Flock waiting for her. They know she is working for the School. They think she betrayed them. So they kick her out. Now what is she going to do? I do not own the Maximum Ride characters, James Patterson does. I do own the story line and Alex.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

I come back to the cave with groceries in hand. When I land I find the Flock waiting for me. Angel with a hurt expression on her innocent face, Gazzy trying to hold back tears, Nudge full on crying, Iggy looking betrayed, and Fang looking heart broken. I drop the groceries.

"What's going on? What happened?!" I say

"We know." Fang replies

"Know what?" I say confused

"We know you are working for the School!" Iggy shouts. "Angel followed you yesterday. We trusted you as our leader and you go behind our backs and work for those monsters! That is probably the reason we keep getting attacked is because you led them straight to us!"

"Iggy, its not what it seems-"

"We don't trust you as a part of the Flock anymore. We don't want someone we can't trust." Fang interrupts

"You're- You're kicking me out?!" I say incredulous. I feel like I am about to cry.

"Ya," Iggy says. Looking at the rest of the Flock they seem to agree.

"Fine! Know this though; Angel, you were always my baby. Gazzy, you were my trooper. Nudge, I always loved your motor mouth. Iggy, your jokes always made me smile. And Fang, you were my heart. But this accusing destroyed all of that so don't come crawling back to me when you figure out the truth!" I yell.

I storm to the entrance of the cave, snap my wings out and take off. That is when the tears hit. How could they do that to me? They are my family and they don't trust me!

I can't see anything through my tears so I land. After I wear myself out by sobbing, I fall asleep.

* * *

When I woke up, the pain of yesterday hits me again. _Pain is just a message._ I remind myself. _I cannot cry again_. After a moment, my stomach growls. Guess I should find a town and eat. I take a running start and unfurl my wings.

After flying for 30 minutes, I land in a small town in Arizona. I eat at McDonalds and then go to find a cave in the desert. I eventually find one and settle down for the night. As I am about to fall asleep, someone sticks a needle in my neck and the world goes dark.

* * *

I wake up in a cage. _Oh shit._ I'm in the School again. _And no one will know._ That is when the man I hate walks in, Jeb.

"Why am I here? What do you want?" I growl

"You are here, Maximum, so we can make you better. We heard the Flock found out you were working with us and kicked you out. We decided to take you, because know no one will care." Jeb said

"You won't do _anything_ with me!"

"We shall see." He replies. Then someone sticks another needle in my neck and the world goes dark again.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2:

 _3 years later…_

I have been at the School for 3 years and no one has come for me. I mean it wasn't like I expected the Flock to come for me at first, but 3 _years_ and still no rescue? They are probably out there enjoying life, while I am being tortured in my own personal hell.

The School first tested my limits with the same boring tests, and then it was back to surgeries. They kept enhancing me. I can now control the elements, create force fields, see in the dark, become invisible, and I am stronger and faster and can hear better than Iggy. I can change and manipulate light and darkness. My hair is now black like the midnight sky while my eyes are golden like the sun.

I didn't know why they gave all of these to me until Jeb told me. They want me to become their assassin. They want me to kill their enemies and also train and test new experiments.

Of course, I resisted at first, but they just put more Erasers with me when I went different places. So I stopped struggling. Eventually I was allowed to maneuver around with only a white coat.

Now most of the time, I am testing other experiments or training with Erasers. My weapon chose are two katanas. I used to not kill experiments or Erasers, but every time I didn't, I was electrocuted to near death. So I started killing. It was extremely difficult at first, but now I don't even think about it.

Today was the final day though. I am going to get out of. Why now? Because they are sending me out on my first mission in two days. This mission is to kill the Flock. As much as I hate them for not rescuing me, I couldn't kill them. I needed to leave.

* * *

It is about midnight and the lights have been off for a while now. I unlock my cage door with number sequence I saw the scientist use. I run to the weapons room and grab my katanas. As I walk through the hallway, no one notices me until a white coat on the night shift opens a door. I turn invisible too late and the white coat gasps. I blind him with darkness and take off on a run.

I turn the last corner and 50 Erasers are waiting for me. I create a force field around me and swarm them with darkness. I push through them, slam into the door, snap my wings out and use supersonic speed to fly away.

I get a good distance before I feel too exhausted to move. I land in the forest and pass out. When I wake up, I am in a wood room laying on a mattress. _How the fuck did I get here?_ I notice I am still wearing the plain sweatpants and shirt the School gave me. Then I hear someone walking towards me and I jump up and grab for my black katanas but realize they are missing. _I can fight without them._ Then a guy with dirty blond hair and blue eyes who looks about my age comes into view.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3:

"Who are you? Where am I?" I ask.

"My name Alex and you are in my humble abode." Alex relpied

"Okay and why am I here?" I say cautiously

"Well, I found you sleeping in the woods so I went over to you. That is when I saw your wings." I sucked in a breath. "Don't worry I am not here to hurt you." Alex says. "As a matter of fact, I have them too." Then Alex shakes off his jacket and pulls out his wings.

His wings were an iridesant teal, that matched his eyes, near his body, then halfway out on the wing it changed to white, and then to midnight blue. I then take a look at his body. He is tall and skinny, but built. He is wearing dark skinny jeans with a light grey t-shirt.

"There beautiful." I whisper.

"Thank you. Now can I see your? It was too dark last night to see the color but I could make an outline of them"

"Um, sure." I slide my wings out. 3 years ago they used to be a pale tan with white streaks and some freckly looking brown spots, but now they are yellow near the base and blake on the ends, like a goldfinch.

He smirks. "I like them," he says. "So where did ya come from?" Alex asks.

"Hmph. Where else but the School." I say. "What about you? Where did you come from?"

"A faacility in New York. I lived there until I escaped a little over 8 years ago. Which one were you in?"

"The one in Death Valley. I grew up there until we escaped when I was around 10. Then five years later I was captured again for three years until last night."

"We?" Alex asked confused

"What?" I also said confused

"You said 'Until we escaped', who is the we?" He clarified.

"Oh, um I had 5 other people with me. They were my Flock" I said sadly.

"What happened to them?"

"They kicked me out when they found out I was working for the School. That next night I got captured."

"You were working for those sick bastards?!" Alex said backing away.

"No, no its not what you think! I was trying to get rid of there experation dates after my half-brother died! In return they were testing me. I promise I could never work for them on my own free will."

"Okay. I believe you, but why didn't you tell your Flock that?"

"They wouldn't listen." Tears started forming in my eyes. _No! I have shed to many tears for them!_

"Oh…"

It was an akward silence until my stomach growled. Alex chuckled. "I guess your hungry. I can make you a sandwhich if ya want?"

"Make it 10 and you have a deal!"

"Okay. By the way, I never got your name."

"Its Max."

"Well, Max, I will go make your sandwhiches"

"Thanks."

* * *

 _20 minutes later…_

Alex and I are eating at the table. At first it was silent while we were eating, but when we both finished. Alex askes "What are you powers?"

"If I tell you mine will you tell me yours?"

"Of course."

"Okay well, I can fly at supersonic, turn invisible, control the elements, like water, fire, air, and earth, I can breathe under water, manipulate light and darkness, and create force fields."

"Damn. You hit the jackpot!"

"Ya well, that is what I get when I am tortured for three damn years. So what are yours?"

"I can create force fields as well. I can also teleport and read emotions." He says outloud. _"and I am telepathic."_ Alex says in my mind.

"That's awesome! So how long can I stay?"

"As long as you want." He says smiling.

"Okay." I say, also smiling.

* * *

It has been two months since I met Alex, and they have been amazing. We spar together, talk about my time at the School, go flying together, tell jokes and he is teaching me how to cook without burning something. After our talk when I met him, he gave me back my katanas and money for new clothes. We haven't talked about my Flock since the first day, but I know he is still curious. Oh! And we have also started dating!

Anyways, I just went to the grocery store and am flying back. When I land, I go to the kitchen and set the bags down. Alex teleports behind me and wraps his arms around my waist. "I missed you." He whispers in my ear.

"I was only gone for 3 hours!"

"Ya but that is too long!"

"Okay well I am hungry, so whats for dinner?"

"I was thinking pizza."

"Sounds delicious."

* * *

Once we finish eating, we hear a knock on the door. "Are we expecting anyone?" I ask Alex.

"No.." Alex says.

I pick up my katanas and cautiously open the door. When I open the door, a blond haired, blue eyed girl about 10 years old, says "Hi."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N Hey guys! Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I got caught up in school. _I also changed the chapters from the end of chapter 3 and on_ because I didn't like it and I had another idea. Anyways, I want to thank everyone who has reviewed but especially the guest that gave me constructive criticism. I want to make sure you know a few things:**

 **1) Alex's wings are based off the lilac-breasted roller. This is actually a beautiful bird so look it up.**

 **2) Max can no longer read minds. It was a challenge to write with and as the guest said, she had too many powers.**

 **3) Instead of create and destroying light and darkness, Max manipulates them. I should have remembered that energy couldn't be created or destroyed, but changed.**

 **Thank you and I will always take feedback and criticism.**

* * *

"Who are you? And what do you want?" I growled.

"We saw you fly down. Look, we are just like you, but we need somewhere to sleep and eat. Please?" A black – haired male answers and slowly extends his wings. Then I notice there are 5 of them. 2 girls; one with blond hair blue eyes, and one with brown hair, caramel eyes, and brown skin. One of the 3 males has black hair and black eyes, another with strawberry-blond hair and glassy blue eyes, and the younger male has blond hair and blue eyes. That's when I realize it's the Flock.

"Shit," I mumble. "Ya, come in. We can go to the living room. Alex, we have visitors."

They start walking in and into the living room. After I shut the door, I walk over and sit by Alex in the love seat. Iggy and Fang choose the single couches, while Angel, Nudge, and Gazzy sat on the long couch. I form a force field around Alex and me so the Flock can't here what I am saying. "Alex, it's the Flock. They said they need a place to sleep and they look horrible so I let them in. They don't know it is me though, so call me Ally. Oh, and put up the mental blocks, Angel can read minds."

"Okay. I love you." He then kisses me on the cheek. I drop the force field and say "Sorry, we had to talk. So who are you and what's your story?"

"I'm Nudge, that's Fang, Gazzy, Iggy, and Angel." She said when she pointed to the person. "We grew up in the School, where they gave us wings. We escaped when I was like 7. I am 15 now. Anyways there used to be 6 of us. The other person was our leader. Her name was Max. The first 4 years were great until Eraser showed up and we ended up running. Eventually we Max left 3 years ago and we have been looking for her ever since. We really miss her. Fang was the most upset because he loved…" I notice Gazzy put his hand over.

"Sorry, she has a motor mouth." Gazzy says.

"Its fine. Well, I am Ally and this is Alex, my boyfriend. I will go make you guys some food." I get up and go to the kitchen and start making sandwiches. Alex comes up next to me and starts helping. Eventually, we have about 50 sandwiches and go back in the living room. "Eat up" I say to the Flock and they all dive in. After they finish, I say, "There are 3 spare bedrooms. Alex and I are in the farthest bedroom. Goodnight."

* * *

 _I am in the Arena with another experiment. From the looks of it, it was part lion, part snake, and part human of course. It was as powerful as a lion and as quick at a snake, but still I was winning._

 _It came at me trying to slam me into the mat, but I stepped to the side at the very last second and kicked him in the back. He falls to the floor and I pin him. I am about the get up when I hear someone over the intercom say, "Kill it!" "No!" I reply defiantly._

 _Next thing I know 20 Erasers come towards me and another 10 towards the experiment. They snap the boy's neck right in front of me. All I could do is stare in horror and shock as they took me to another room and strapped me in a prostrate chair._

 _I felt the Erasers stick something to my hands, feet, stomach, arms and legs. All the sudden a shock went through me. The pain was nothing like I have ever felt. "AHHHHHH!" I screamed. When the pain eased up, I was gaping for air. Then another jolt of electricity went through me, but this time worse. "AHHHHHHHHHH!" I yet again scream._

"ALLY!" _I here someone yelling and my body is shaking. I can't breathe._

"ALLY!" I wake up in cold sweat, crying and shaking. Someone is hugging me. _Alex,_ I think smiling and pull him deeper in the hug.

"What was it about this time?" Alex asks worriedly. The nightmares first happened after I escaped the School. Alex would always wake me up and hold me. Then we would fall asleep together. After the first week, I realized if I fell asleep with Alex next to me, the nightmares wouldn't occur. So I started sleeping in Alex's bed.

"The time I almost got electrocuted to death. They must be coming back, because they are here. I am fine now, I promise." I look at the clock. Its 2:30. "Let's go back to sleep. I love you, Alex."

"I love you, too"

When we wake up, we go to the kitchen. No one else is up and we start making eggs, pancakes, and bacon. By the time we finish cooking everything, all the Flock is up. Everybody starts eating and then Iggy asks, "Are you okay?"

I gave him a confused look, "What do you mean?"

"Well, we all woke up and found you screaming."

"Oh, it was just a nightmare."

"You know, you never told us your stories." Angel said.

"Well, I grew up in the school, escaped, and eventually got captured and dragged back until I escaped again and met Alex."

"That's really vague." Fang said.

"Ya, well I don't feel like reliving it. Not the greatest moments of my life" I growled, "I am going to the store, again. Not used to feeding 7 hungry bird people." I get up, grab Alex's credit card and fly off. After I buy some stuff from the grocery store. I start heading back. On my way back though, I hear a shot ring out. Then, I feel a pain in my wing and fall to the ground. Waiting for me there are 50 Erasers. "Shit!" Then they all attack. I defend myself the best I can but many of them punch or kick me. Eventually, I kill them all, but I am bleeding everywhere and I start seeing black in the edge of my vision. Knowing I am about to pass out, I use the rest of my energy to fly supersonic back to the house. Right as I enter the house, I black out.


	5. Chapter 5

When I woke up I was in a bed. It was familiar, but it wasn't Alex's house. _Where am I? How did I get here and where is Alex?_ I get out of bed and walk downstairs. Before I enter a room, I hear arguing. I walk into what I think is the kitchen and see Alex and Fang yelling.

"How do we know we can trust her?" Alex yelled

"Because she has helped us before! We lived with her for half a year after Max left!" Fang yelled back.

"What is going on? Why are you guys fighting?" I ask. Both turn towards me. Then Alex teleports to my side and kisses me.

"WHAT THE FUCK?" I hear Fang yells surprised.

Alex pulls away from the kiss, "Haha, oops? Forgot to tell them I can teleport." He says laughing.

I look around the room and it hits me. This is my mom's house.

"Alex, where am I? What are we doing here?"

"Apparently we are at a veterinarian's house. She knows about the whole wings thing. And don't you remember? You came back to the house bleeding and beaten up and then passed out. I thought you died! Anyways, Fang said he knew where to go. I picked you up and we flew here."

"How long have I been out?"

Just then, another person walked in. "Three days. Honestly, I don't think you should be up and I am the doctor so you are going back to bed." I gasp as I see my mother. She comes up to me and says "Hi, Ally, I am Dr. Martinez. I'm going to help you get back to bed so I can check on your bandages."

"Okay." I kiss Alex and head upstairs with her. When we get to my room, I can't resist the urge, so I run up and hug her.

"Oh, wow." She says. I slowly let go with tears streaming down my face. "You know, you look really familiar. Do I know you from somewhere?"

"Um, yeah, you do. You probably don't recognize me because my hair, eyes, and wings changed color, but it's me mom."

"Max?" I nod and she starts crying and hugs me. "What happened to you? I have missed you so much. Why didn't the Flock tell me?"

"Well, the Flock didn't tell you because they don't know and I don't want them too. And what happened to me is a long story." I sit her down on the bed and tell her about the Flock kicking me out, why I was working for the School, how the School captured me, why I escaped, and how I met Alex. I didn't tell her the torture I went through at the School though. When I finish, both of us are crying. "Mom, you can't tell anyone. Not even Ella. You have to call me Ally."

"I promise."

"What happened after they kicked me out?"

"Well, they showed up at the door randomly, looking beaten up. When I asked what happened and where you were, they told me you left and Erasers came and without out you, they barely held them off. They stayed here for months until they were a little better and went to find you. They came back and visited, every time they looked more and more depressed until some of them gave up and thought you were dead. They decided to take one more search and then they came back with you in a random guy's arms. You looked dead. So that is all I know."

"How is Ella?"

"She thinks you are dead. I have been taking her to a therapist, because I started to notice that she wasn't eating and she had been cutting her wrist. She is at school right now."

"Oh my god." I started to cry. I looked at the clock and it says 12:15. "I need to tell her. Can I pick her up from school early?"

"Of course. But after I change your bandages." She changed them and we went downstairs. I see everyone in the living room. "I am going out," I tell everyone.

"No way! Last time you got attacked!" Alex says as he stands up.

"Can I talk to you alone, Alex?"

"Sure."

We go into the other room and I put up a force field. "Alex, we can trust Dr. Martinez."

"How do you know?"

"Because she is my mom. She knows who I am now. And I am going to pick up my half sister from school to tell her too. I need to do this alone."

"Okay. But if you come back injured, you are never leaving my sight."

"I promise. Oh and can I have some money?"

* * *

When I get to Ella's school, I tell the office that I am a family relative that Dr. Martinez called about. They allow me to go and find Ella. As I walk down the hallway, I see Ella getting pushed up against the lockers and getting punched. I put up a force field in around her and run to her. The bullied try and get to us but fail. I give them the nastiest glare and growl while saying, "Don't ever touch her again. " They then run away, looking like they might pee their pants.

"Who are you? How did you do that? And why?" Ella asks.

"First, let's get out of here." I take her to a diner. She is a little hesitant, probably because she thinks I am a stranger. "So, how's the depression?"

Her eyes widen and she says, "What do you mean? Who are you?"

"Mom told me."

"Mom? Who are you?"

"Well, I was the girl dying in your house."

"You're the Ally everyone keeps talking about? They never let me see you."

"Only the Flock knows me by Ally. Actually, the Flock used to know me very well. And everyone used to call me Max"

Her eyes widen. "MAX?! As in my dead sister?"

"Yes and no. Yes, I am your sister, but I am obviously not dead." I say smirking.

She gets up and hugs me. By now she is balling her eyes out. "What happened to you?"

I tell her the same story I tell mom. Then, being Ella, says, "You're leaving out something. What happened at the School?"

"You don't want to know."

"Yes, I do. And you better tell me, otherwise I will tell the Flock."

"Okay, okay. Well, it started out with Jeb just testing me to see where my limits were so they ended with me passing out. Then I started to test and train other experiments, but I refused to kill them. That got me electrocuted to near death. Eventually, I did kill the experiments, but I was almost killed three to five times a week for half a year. A month after I started killing, they did experiments on me. They injected new things in me during surgeries. I got new powers. Then, it was back to testing and training experiments, but also testing my abilities against Erasers. Those fights ended with me severely injured or unconscious. They were training me to be an assassin. The reason I left when I did was because, soon they would assign my first mission, kill the Flock."

"Damn."

"Yeah, by the way, you can't tell the Flock about anything and call me Ally. And you have to stop cutting and start eating."

"Okay."

"What was that about in school anyway?" I ask.

"All the popular people I used to be friends with call me emo and beat me."

"How does mom not know?!"

"She has her suspicions, but there is this thing called make-up. Great, for covering up."

"That's it. I am coming to school with you."

"What! No way! They won't allow it!"

"I can convince them. Come on let's go home."


	6. Chapter 6

When we got home, everyone, but mom was in the living room talking. "What's up?" I asked.

"Just talking. Why are you with Ella?" Nudge asked.

"Oh, she is an old friend of mine. She left a while ago, though, but came and surprised me at school. How do you guys know her?"

"We didn't know you knew Ally. Ally let us stay at her place while we were searching for you know whom. Why didn't you ever say you knew an Avian-American?" Iggy asked.

"You have wings?!" Ella asked acting surprised.

"Um, ya. The reason I know Ella is because after I escaped the School, I came here and went to Ella's school. We meet and became friends. She never knew I had wings. I left when I saw Erasers near the school. When I woke up here, the house seemed familiar but I couldn't place it until Dr. Martinez introduced herself. She didn't recognize my name because it has been years. Also, I am planning on going with Ella to school to find my other friends."

"Can we come?" Gazzy, Nudge, and Angel asked simultaneously.

"NO." "Sure" Fang and I said at the same time. Of course, I am the one that said no.

"Why can't they?" Iggy asks.

"Well, one they won't be in the same building. Two, they won't know anyone. Three, they could be attacked. Four, it would be weird for them to start going to school for a month, then leave."

"Wait, your injured, yet you can go? And why just a month?" Fang questions.

"Ya well I can defend myself."

"Last time you got attacked and almost died."

"Last time I was carrying groceries."

"Fine you get that, but if they go, they could stay in longer than a month."

"True, I mean I thought you guys were going to find that Max person."

"Well, she is probably dead."

"You don't know that. Have you checked the School?"

"How would you know?"

"Well, maybe she was captured like me."

"If she is at the School, then she probably working for them."

"Suit yourself. I am going to school with Ella and no one else." I say sternly. I then realize that everyone was staring at Fang and me when we were arguing.

"Fine." He says.

"So, we all don't really know each other. I say we go around and say our powers and show our wings and how old we are." Gazzy suggests.

"YEAH!" Angel says enthusiastic, "I can read minds, control them, breathe underwater, and I am telepathic. I am 10 years old." When she spreads out her wings, they are still white, but they are a little dirty.

"I am 12 years old. I can mimic anyone, make a bomb out of anything, and clear a room in 10 seconds." Gazzy informs us. His wings are like barn owls.

"I can attract metal and hack into almost any computer. I can fix any car and talk really fast. I am 15." Nudge says in the shortest sentence I have ever heard from her. Her wings are still tawny brown.

"I am 18. I am blind, so I have hyphened senses, I can feel colors, I can make a bomb out of anything, and I am a great cook, when I used to at least." Iggy then shook out his wings. They are a light gray.

Fang is next. "I am also 18. I can turn invisible and breathe underwater." His wings are still black.

"Well, I guess it is my turn," Alex states. "I am 19. I can teleport, read emotions, create force fields, and I am telepathic." He pulls out his wings. I still find them amazing every time.

"Okay, well, I am 18. I can breathe underwater, create force fields, and turn invisible." My wings look like a gold finch because of the light and dark powers. I didn't want to tell them all my abilities, because there are some that only Max had and they would recognize it, and I don't want them to know everything. _Max, you are panicking._ I hear Alex say. And then I realize I was breathing really fast. "I am going to take a nap. I am exhausted from recovering." I walk out of the room. I fall asleep quickly.

* * *

 _I am fighting off the Erasers in the Arena. I am losing horrible though. They get me on the ground and one punches me hard in the stomach. I scream and then everything goes black, but I am still awake._ What just happened? _Then I feel an Eraser punch me in the stomach again and again, as I am screaming and everything keeps changing from light to dark._

"ALLY!" I wake up and see Ella over me, while Alex is hugging me.

I realize everything is dark, "Shit. What happened?"

"Well, your boyfriend saw the lights randomly go out and I was up here so I also heard the screaming before the lights went out. Then, every time you screamed, the lights switched."

"Fuck, I was dreaming about the first time I discovered that power."

"Wait, which power?" Ella asks.

"I can manipulate light energy and make it dark or vice versa."

"Why didn't you tell the Flock that?"

"I don't want them to know."

"Oh, okay. Well can you turn the light back on?"

"Haha ya." I focus and manipulate the energy.

"Ella, could you leave?" Alex asks.

"Yup, I need to do homework anyways." Once she leaves, Alex turns me around to face him.

"Are you sure you are okay?"

"I will never be okay again. What if they find out it's me? I finally started to settle down with you and them they show up. Why me! I thought I could actually leave a semi-normal life with you and grow up and maybe get married!"

"Well, I can help with one of those." All the sudden, Alex gets off the bed and gets down on one knee. I gasp, thinking he is about to propose. Then, he ties his shoe and stands up. Seeing, my expression, he starts laughing.

"You jackass! You made me think you were proposing!" I start hitting his arms and then start laughing as well. We fall on the floor laughing our asses off. That is when Fang walked in.

"What are you guys laughing at?"

"Nothing!" We both say.

"Okay, well dinner is ready."

"Okay." I reply.

After Fang leaves, we get up, Alex whispers in my ear, "When I do propose, I will make it the best night ever." I blush as he walks away.


	7. Chapter 7

Dinner was awkward. The Flock was wondering why everything went black then back to light. Well, everyone except Iggy. Most of the time Alex, Ella, and I kept our mouths shut. Alex was sitting next to me, holding my hand under the table. Every once in a while, we would look at each other and start laughing, remembering earlier.

That night I slept peacefully. I woke up, untangled myself from Alex, and went downstairs and started making breakfast at 6:00. My mom and Ella, eventually, came down.

"Well the house isn't on fire and you're cooking? When did you learn? And how?" Mom said surprised.

"Well, Alex taught me. At first, I started a lot of fires, but I could control them."

"Control them? How?" Ella asked curious.

I opened my palm and started a small flame in my hand.

"Jesus Christ!" my mom yelled.

Just then I heard running foot steps, going down the stairs. I quickly closed my palm. Fang came flying around the corner.

"What's wrong?" He asked, a little out of breathe.

Dr. Matinez quickly recoverd from her shock and said, "Nothing, just surprised Ally is cooking."

"Oh, okay. She is actually a good cook. Not better than Iggy used to be, but good." Fang replied.

"What do you mean used to be?" I asked.

"Ever since Max left, he stopped cooking. Everybody was depressed. Nudge used to talk a lot more, Gazzy and Angel used to be more happy, and Iggy used to cook everyday." Fang said as his eyes got glassy. It looked like he was in another memory.

"Okay, well Ella and I need to eat before we go to school."

"Wait, you were serious about that?" Ella asked.

"Ya, why wouldn't I be?" 

"I don't know, but school starts at 7 and I takes 15 minutes to get there. I usually don't eat, because I need to get dressed and that takes anout 40 minutes."

"No. Sit down and eat. I know another way to get there." I reply.

"Ally, you can't fly. You got shot in the wing." Mom said worried.

"Whoever said we were going to fly."

After we got ready, I woke Alex up and brought him downstairs.

"Alex is going to teleport us, so Ella grab his other hand." I say as I grab one hand.

"Ready?" Alex asks. I nod and then as fast as someone could blink, we are outside Ella's school.

"Well, that is weird. Come on let's go. School starts in 10 minutes and we have to go to the office." Ella says.

"Okay." I kiss Alex and walk with Ella into the school office. "Hi, I am here to follow Ella for a month." I say to the secretary.

"I am sorry, but we don't do that for a month. You are going to have to go home."

"No. I am going to follow her." I give her my nasiest glare. I see her shiver and then click on a few things on her computer.

"I just emailed all Ella's teachers, telling them there is a shadow for a month."

"Great! Let's go Ella!" We start walking toward her locker. When we get there, there are a group of boys waiting for her.

"Oh! Ella got a friend! She must be loser and emo just like you!-" I cut one of guys off with a "soft punch to the stomach.

"Never. Ever. Call. Her. Emo. Or. A Loser. Again." I growl.

Most of them shiver, but one daring boy stepped forward. He has orange hair and gol He seemed a little out of place and he seemed…. Not human.

"Oh, fiesty. I like them fiesty." He says. I tackle him and punch him in stomach. I bend down and whisper in his ear, "What are you?" He then flips us over and punches me in the face, smirking. He thinks he has won. HAHA. I flip us back over and punched him a few times in the face. He tried again to get up, but I am stronger. I hear him growl and realize something. _He is part lion._ Two teeth on top and two teeth on bottom are longer and he growls like a lion. "You're part lion." I say smirking.

"I don't know what you mean."

"Sure you do. I am also from there. Question is; did you escape or are you on a mission?"

"I don't have to tell you."

"No, but I also escaped. I can help you. Find me after school." I get off him and walk back to Ella. A crowd had formed around us and were all looking at me with wide eyes and their mouths wide open.

"You guys are going to catch flies," I retort. I grab Ella and walk towards the bathroom. Once I made sure no one was in there a turn to Ella.

"He is from the School."

"No way. He seems so normal except for the fact he is a bully."

"He must have escaped and bullies because he now has the power to. He is part lion though. I need to help him."

"Of course you do. The Maximum Ride must help everyone!"

"Yes, I do. Especially since I need to make up for all those I have killed."

"Oh."

"Ya. Now, if I go home with this bruise on my face, Alex will never leave me alone. Do you have any makeup?"

The rest of the day went fine. Well, everyone was staring at me. After school, as I was walking out the doors, I notice he was waiting for me.

"Ah, okay so you want my help."

"Yes. First off, I go by Bryce here. Who are you?"

"Well this," I say grabbing Ella,"Is Ella my sister, who you have been bullying. I, on the other hand go by Ally here, but others know me by Maximum Ride."

"No way. There is no way you are her. They told us you died! Everyone heard about your escape and were rebelling! You are why we all had hope. Then they told us Erasers killed you and we all lost it. If you couldn't have made it, none of us could."

"I didn't die. I was captured."

"What about your Flock? How did you get captured?"

"They are alive. That is all you need to know. Now, have you spotted any Erasers?"

"No. But if I do, you will be the first to know and then I am gone."

"Okay. We have to go. By the way, never touch my sister again."

"I promise."

When we got home, Iggy was waiting for us. "Ally, can I talk to you?" "Ya, sure." We walk into a another room while Ella went upstairs.

"So, why were you really at Ella's school today?"

"I was visiting friends."

"Really? Then how come Gazzy didn't see you talk to anyone at all except Ella during school."

"You watched us?"

"Something didn't seem right, so Gazzy and I went to see. We saw the fight and then you didn't talk to anyone except for the same guy that you fought with."

"Okay, fine. The only friend I made was Ella. I only went today to protect her." I saw Iggy's face pale and his eyes fill with worry.

"Protect her from what?"

"Not my place to say."

He shoved me against a wall, "Tell me!"

"You're still in love with her aren't you?"

"What?"

"Well you used to like her didn't you?

"There are only a few people that. Who are you?"

 _Shit. Shit. Shit. Fucking Shit! I forgot that I am not supposed to know anyhting!_ "What do you mean, Iggy?"

"Holy shit."

"What?" 

"Say my name again."

"Why?"

"Just do it."

"Iggy."

"Max?"

 _Shit._


	8. Chapter 8

_Shit. I can't lie to him._ "How did you figure it out?" I asked. I was then pulled off the wall into a hug, but I didn't hug him back.

"Your voice was familiar at first, but I couldn't place it. Then you said that I used to like Ella. Only the Flock knew that. When you said my name, I remembered you saying it years ago." Iggy said

I push away from him. Iggy got a confused look, "Just because I helped you guys doesn't mean I forgive you. And if you tell anyone who I really am, not the Flock or a stranger or anyone, you will never be able to talk again." I snarl and storm off to my room.

* * *

The next few weeks were just about the same. I would go to school with Ella and come home and help out with house stuff. Iggy and I didn't talk to each other but I did catch him giving me weird looks once in a while.

Once I could, Alex and I would go out flying every night. Of course, we would eventually find a spot to land and watch the stars, but that always ended in us making out. We never went to far if you know what I mean. When we got close to **that** point we would break apart and fly back with a smile on our faces. We haven't talked about proposing since that night either.

I haven't talked to Bryce much except to ask about Erasers, which there haven't been any signs. His group did stop bothering Ella, but she is still bullied, but not as much. I may have scared them. Ella has started eating more and stopped cutting. It has helped knowing that I am alive.

I am fully healed and it is approaching the time when Alex and I go back to our lovely abode. It is a Friday night and everyone is siting at the table eating Mexican food for dinner.

"So, Ally, how long were you at the School for?" Angel asks.

"In all, around 13 years."

"How did you escape?" Gazzy asks curiously.

"Which time?" I reply

"Both, I guess." He said.

"The first time I had help from a scientist and other experiments. The second time I was on my own, but I was determined."

"What happened to the other experiments that escaped with you?" Fang asked now joining the conversation.

"They made it out, but died when I was recaptured." I started breathing faster.

"Why were you determined to escape the second time?" Iggy asked. That is when I started shaking. Alex leans over, kisses my forehead and says, "shhh calm down. You are safe now. You don't have to answer if you don't want to." He then pulls me into his lap and holds me. Dr. Martinez glares at him while everyone else smirks. Well, everyone except Fang.

"Awwwww. That's so cute! I always wanted someone to do that to me! You guys are my fav couple. Well second favorite. Max and Fang were my favorite. They fought it at first but you could tell they loved each other-" Nudge was interrupted by Fang backing up his chair. His face was hard to read, but his eyes were full of sadness. He ran out the door and flung his wings open and took off. During Nudge's rant, Alex had gone stiff.

"We are going to go to bed." I say to the rest of the people at the table. I get off Alex and grab his hand and pull him up the steps and into our room.

"Why didn't you tell me you dated him? Were you in love with him?" Alex asked angry.

"At the time, yes, I was in love with him. Then he turned around and betrayed me. Do you wanna know what he said to me that night? He said he didn't trust me. There is no way I can ever love him again. I didn't tell you because I was hoping to never see him again." I said with tears streaming down my face. "Alex, you are the one I want to be with. You are the one I love. The love I had for Fang is nothing compared to how much I love you."

He ran up and hugged me, kissed me on the cheek. "I am sorry. I thought you would leave me for him and I can't lose you. Let me make it up to at dinner tomorrow. But for now, can we go to sleep?"

"Yeah." We lie down in bed and fall asleep

* * *

After breakfast the next day, I ask Alex, "Anything I need to know about our date tonight?"

"Ya, you are going to want to wear something fancy." He walks away smirking.

"Crap." I walk to Nudge's room and knock on the door. She quickly opens the door and I see Ella sitting on her bed. "Come in Ally!" Nudge says. I walk in and sit next to Ella.

"What's up?" Ella asks.

"Well, Alex is taking me on a date and he says I need to wear something fancy. I am not great in the fashion department and I have no fancy clothes. So could you help me?" I say sheepishly.

"OF COURSE!" They say at the same time with huge grins on their faces. _Shit. This may have been a bad idea._


	9. Chapter 9

After hours of being dragged from store to store with Nudge and Ella, we were back at home in Ella's room. Ella was putting make-up on me while Nudge was curling my hair. 30 minutes later I was looking at my reflection in the mirror. "I barely recognize myself. I love it!" I say. Nudge and Ella were beaming.

My hair is in long curls with a few strands from each side pulled back and clipped. Ella used natural colors with a little eyeliner and mascara and lipstick. I had on a royal blue dress that had thick spaghetti straps and was a fit and flare. My shoes were black high heels, courtesy of Ella and I had on a pearl necklace that Alex once gave me.

Angel came running. "Alex sent me to get you. Wow, you look really nice." She said

"Thanks. Well I guess that's my cue." I walk down the stairs and into the kitchen. When Alex sees me, his eyes grew wide. "You look beautiful." He says in wonder.

"Thank you," a blush I DID NOT ASK FOR creeps onto my face. Alex kisses my forehead and I see a bright flash. I turn and see my mom with a camera in her hands. "Sorry, it was just so cute!"

"Thanks, Dr. M." Alex says. "Shall we go?" He asks me. I nod and turn to see Iggy with an angry look on his face, while beside him, Fang had a somber one. Then, I walk out the door with Alex.

We teleported to _Elements_ , one of the most romantic restaurants in Phoenix. I was getting a little supsicious but I kept it to myself. I ordered the steak, while he ordered the pork chop. We made small talk and joked around. After our entrees, the waiter came out with a desert plate and placed it in front of me. It looked like peanut butter mousse with a dark chocolate glaze on top. I noticed writing on the plate: _Look Up…_

I must have been too interested in the dessert to notice Alex had gotten up and knelt beside me. He takes my hand and starts to speak. "Max, I know I have only known you for a short time, but I was lonely before you. I thought I was made to be alone. No one could ever know what I have been through. I thought there was no one like me. Then, you showed up and I was finally happy. You made me feel like I could belong and be loved. You can make me laugh when no one else can. I love you, Max. " He pulled out a box and opened it. The ring was white gold band with a solitaire cut and a circular diamond in the middle ( product/solitaire+engagement+ring+ ?sortby=bestSellersAscend&catId=5663&from=fn) "Will you marry me?"

By now, I was in tears and I never cry. "Yes. Yes, of course!" Alex put the ring on my left ring finger and we stood up and kiss. Then, everyone in the restaurant started clapping and I sheepishly pull away.

"Want to get out of here?" Alex asks. I nod again and Alex puts money on the table and we get the desert to go. Once out of sight, we take off flying. Alex takes my hand and leads me to a hotel. "I felt like we should be alone. We don't have to do anything if you don't want."

"Is it alright if we just enjoy the moment and sleep?" I ask.

"Of course." And I feel asleep in the arms of my fiancée.

The next day we go back to the house. As we walk in, hand in hand, we see everyone eating breakfast. My mom turns to look at us. "Why are you so smiley? You don't seem like a morning person." She said with a knowing smirk.

"Alex and I are engaged!" I said happily. "AHHHHHHHHH!" I heard Angel, Ella and Nudge scream, and then I was tackled to the ground. I started laughing and hugged them. I realized I kind of missed being with my family and the Flock. They were always there for me, except for _that_ night. Eventually we got up and everyone else congratulated us. Fang even hugged me, which surprise the hell out of me.

Once everyone settled back down and were eating breakfast I knew I should tell everyone what Alex and I decided this morning. "Um I hate to bring every down after our earlier announcement but we have some other news."

"Are you pregnant?" Ella asks with wide eyes.

"No, NO. " I say as my cheeks probably as red as a fire truck. "First off, I don't even know if I _can_ get pregnant being a flying mutant science project and second off it is impossible. No, what I was going to say is that Alex and I are going back to our house tomorrow." I look at Alex and smile while everyone else's eyes grow wider since they were already wide at Ella's question.


	10. Chapter 10

**Guys, I am so sorry I haven't updated in a while. I had a writers block and the fact that finals were coming up and all my teachers were cramming work and tests in. But now that it is summer, I am hopin to update a lot more! Please criticize in the reviews so I can fix it!**

* * *

"But you guys just got here." Mom said but in her eyes I knew what she was saying: _I just got my daughter back._ Her and Ella's eyes were watering.

"I know but we need to go back to our house and live our own lives." I say holding Alex's hand.

Mom and Ella just nod accepting that we needed to. Then, the Flock had to butt in.

"So what time are we leaving tomorrow?" Fang asks.

"What?! Aren't you guys supposed to be searching for Max?" They all flinched while Iggy shot me an accusing look. "Sorry." I apologize.

"Well we can at least make sure you guys get there okay and we were going to go out that way." Iggy says this time.

"Fine. We leave early because it is going to take a few hours since we will have to stop."

Everyone nodded and got up to take their plates to the sink. Then we went upstairs to pack for tomorrow's trip.

* * *

In the morning, I fixed pancakes, eggs, and bacon enough to feed an army before anyone got up. One by one everyone came down and started grabbing food.

"Damn. I'm still not used to anyone cooking good meals besides Iggy or Dr. Martinez. When we lived by ourselves, Iggy used to cook because Fang didn't want to and Max just burnt it. Then we got the Max card and could buy meals unless we were on the run." Nudge said. As if suddenly realizing that I was Max and was cooking, Iggy "looked" at me surprised.

"How did you learn to cook?" Iggy asked.

"I used to not be able to. But Alex forced me to practice because we could only make sandwiches and pre made stuff. There were a lot of fires though, so we always had a fire extinguisher on hand." I smiled at Alex, who returned it. Everyone laughed, well except for Fang, he chuckled.

Once the Flock finished eating, I said, "Okay, I would like to head home so we have plently of time for the fly." I get a chorus of okays as a response and we all say goodbye to mom and Ella.

"You guys are always welcomed here, even you guys, Ally and Alex. Stop by at any time and be safe." Mom said. I walk over and hug her and whisper, "I love you," in her ear. I step back and see her smile. She hands me a bag, probably full of food and other stuff. I smile back and take the bag and put it over my shoulder. I walk out the door, hand in hand with my fiancé, and followed by the Flock. I shake out my wings, let go of Alex's hand and launch into the air.

* * *

We have been flying for a few hours. When hell breaks loose. Again. I see a bunch of Flyboys and Erasers flying towards us. "Hey, guys, we have incoming. About 100 Flyboys, and 200 Erasers."

"Uhhh, that is more than usual." Gazzy said warily.

"Yah, but that is because I am here. Anyways, get ready, they will be on us in about 2 minutes." I say. Everyone starts to get ready and stretch and then they reach us. I see everyone fighting there own battles occasionally helping someone else, but the most amount of Erasers and Flyboys were attacking me. We were doing great until I see Alex start falling from the sky with his eyes closed.

"ALEX!" I scream as I send out a wave of darkness to the rest of the Erasers and Flyboys, killing the last 100. I used my speed to catch Alex and lower him to the ground. He had claw marks all the way across his torso and a nasty gash on his head both were bleeding profusely. I felt his pulse and it was extremely weak and fading. I hear the others flying down to us. I feel tears running down my face and drip onto Alex's face. I take his face in my hands and whisper, "Alex, please don't leave me. You can't die, we are supposed to get marries and start a life. I can't live without you. I love you! Please don't die." I start sobbing and hug his body and felt his heart beat slower and slower.


	11. Chapter 11

I was sobbing on his chest, feeling the life slowly drain out of him. I take his face back in my hands, straddle his stomach, and lay my head back on his chest. I was about to get up when I felt a warmth spread through my body. I sat up again, quickly and saw my hands glowing. Alex's face was beginning to gain color and the cuts stopped bleeding and were closing. I felt his heart beat get stronger. I turned my head to look at the Flock, never taking my hands off of Alex's face. They all looked like they had been crying, even Fang looked really sad, now they all had shocked looks on their faces. I was about to say something, but a wave of exhaustion hit me and I passed out.

* * *

I wake in the same room I woke up in when Alex first found me. I smile at the memory until I remember that the last time I saw him, he was about to die. I quickly swing my legs to the side of the bed and stand up, but had to sit down due to dizziness. I hear the door open and look to see Fang in the doorway. "You shouldn't stand up." He says.

"Alex?" I ask knowing he will understand what I am asking.

"He is stable. Still unconscious, but alive."

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. "Can I see him?"

"Later. You need to shower and change. Once you're done, come to the kitchen so you can eat." He leaves and I walk into the bathroom after I grab a pair of sweatpants, a sports bra, and a t-shirt. I look in the mirror and see my hair is in knots and splotched with blood, my clothes are covered in blood and my eyes are bloodshot from crying. I quickly take a shower and change and go to the kitchen.

Everyone is sitting at the table while Iggy is cooking. I sit down next to Nudge. Iggy finished making sandwiches and macaroni and cheese. We are quiet while we eat but that ended as soon as we finished. "What happened after I passed out?" I ask.

"I picked you up and while Fangles over there picked up Alex and we brought you back here. You were out the whole night," Iggy says.

"So apparently you have more powers than you said you did." Fang says accusingly.

"Yeah, about that, I guess I can tell you now. Um, I can manipulate energy, such as changing light to darkness, which is what I did to the Erasers. I can also control the elements, and I can fly supersonic. And I just found out I can heal people." They seemed surprised, but before anyone can speak, I decided to change the subject, "So what is your guys' plan? How long will you be here?"

"Well, since Alex is stable, I guess we can leave tomorrow. Look for Max one more time." Fang said dejected. I look at the clock and see it is 10:00 pm.

"Okay. Well, you guys probably need rest from the fight before you leave tomorrow morning. I am going to check on Alex. I will probably sleep there, so you guys can share the other and feel free to use the showers." They nod as I get up and go to Alex and my room. When I walk in and see Alex on the bed. He looks like he is sleeping and I crawl into the bed next to him and quickly fall asleep to the sound of his heartbeat.

* * *

When I wake up at 7:00 am, Alex is still next to me fast asleep. I get up and head to the kitchen to make breakfast for the Flock before they leave. I am in my own world while I cook eggs and bacon, thinking about what has happened this past month. I didn't even hear the Flock come down until I finish breakfast. Soon, we finish eating and they are heading out. I hug them and say, "You guys are always welcome here if you need a place to stay to keep away from danger. Good luck with Max." They nod and fly off.

I start cleaning up and tidying around the house, doing anything I can to keep distracting. Then, the doors are broken in and Erasers walk into my house. In the lead is someone I thought I would never see again. "A-Ari?" I say shocked.

"Hey, sis. So I hear the Flock left you and your boyfriend is dead. You wanna come with us without fighting?"

"Never." I snarl and get into fighting stance. "Get her, boys." Ari says and the Erasers come crashing towards me. I do pretty well at first, but I quickly lose energy from using some powers and there are just too many of them. Soon, one of them hits me in the head and knocks me out.

* * *

Alex POV (I will only do this about two times. Rest in Max POV)

I wake up with my head pounding. I realize I am in my room. The last thing I remember is falling while we were fighting. I get up and head to the kitchen to see if I find anyone. When I get there, there are Erasers bodies and blood everywhere. I run around searching for any signs of Max or the Flock. Nothing. Nada. Then I do the only thing I can think of.

 _ANGEL! Where are you?_ I yell in my mind to Angel, hoping she can here me.

( _Italics – Alex;_ _ **Italics Bold – Angel**_ )

 _ **Alex? Is that you?**_ I sigh in relief.

 _Yeah. Where are you?_

 _ **Flying over some state looking for Max. Isn't Ally there?**_

 _That is why you need to come back. Please hurry, I will you tell you everything when you get here._

 _ **We will be there as soon as we can. Glad your feeling better.**_

As soon as we finish the conversation, I start running around collecting things and putting them in a backpack. I try not to think about Max back in the School. Seeing her after the nightmares she use to have gives me an idea about what they did to her. Now she is back there.

The Flock arrives 2 hours later. They knock but the door just opens due to the fact it's broken. I run towards them. "Thank the angels, (TMI anyone?) you're here. I woke up and this walked in here and found this. I was hoping you weren't taken because there weren't as many bodies. Please fill me in on what happened."

They stand there for a moment with shocked faces at the disaster of the family room and kitchen. Angel is the first to shake out of her daze. "Well, we were fighting and then we hear Ally scream your name and a black wave hit all the Erasers killing them. We see Ally laying you on the ground. You were practically dead and she was losing it. Then he hands start glowing and she healed you, but fell unconscious. We brought you back here. Ally woke up a day after and we talked and went to bed. We left this morning and everything seemed fine. Then, I heard you and we came back."

"Alright. I think I know where she was taken, but I don't know exactly where it is. Where did you guys grow up?" I ask.

"The one in Death Valley." Iggy responds, obviously knowing why she is there.

"You know how to get there right?"

"Yeah. I know where. Why is she there though? How did you know?" Fang says.

"Let's just get going and I can tell you what I know." I respond. Max might kill me for telling them this. Oh well.


	12. Chapter 12

Max POV

I woke up in a crate. _Shit._ Why does this always happen to me? I look around and see other crates. Some were empty while others had kids that were basically dead. A scientist came in with about 20 Erasers. The whitecoat pointed at me. I am taken to do the basic tests and then put in the arena with 3 other experiments to fight. I kill them without hesitation. I look down at my hands and see they are covered in blood.

Of course Jeb walks in and makes matters worse. "Good, you're are finally killing them without hesitation. Maybe we should have killed your boyfriend earlier."

"Fiancé. And I will never be as bad as you." I snarl at him, still slightly horrified by myself.

"We shall see." He said and Erasers came and took me back to my crate. As I sit there, I think of all the horrible things I have done and how many people I have hurt.

Alex POV

As we flew, I started my story.

"9 years ago, I was in a facility in New York. Every kid in there had heard the story of Maximum Ride and her Flock escaping. All the experiments gained hope of escaping; we set a time and date to rebel. There were about 50 of us in the place. Only 10 of us got out.

We split up and went our own ways. I found a house and start making money. Everything was peaceful until less than a few months ago, as I was flying, I saw someone asleep in the middle of the woods. When I got closer, I saw it was a girl my age and she had wings.

I brought her back to my place and it took her about 2 days to finally wake up. At first she was about to kill but trusted me after I showed her my wings. We told where we came from but she must have slipped up and said 'we escaped'. I asked her about it and she said she was part of a Flock until they kicked her out when they thought she was working for the School.

I freaked out thinking she was working for those people but she told me the real reason." I was interrupted by Nudge, "What was the reason? What is important enough reason for her to work for the School?" "She said that she saw her half-brother die in front of here from his expiration date and wanted them removed from the rest of her family. When the Flock found out they didn't want to hear her excuses so she left. I asked for her name before I made her food and she said Max.

As I was making food, I put the pieces together and realized I was talking to the Maximum Ride. " I looked up at the Flock for the first time and saw they were all crying. "You guys left her when she was trying to help you. She got captured and was at the School for 3 years. I have an idea about how bad it was but she never told me. Max just had these horrible nightmares. Eventually they stopped and we started dating. Then, you guys showed up and she made me call her Ally so you all didn't know. She told her mom and Ella, but one other person found out." I use a pointed look at Iggy.

"I found out, because I recognized her voice and cornered her. She threatened to cut out my tongue and you guys know Max and her threats." Iggy said solemnly.

The Flock looked shocked and saddened. We were almost there and no one wanted to speak. We got to the School and went in, prepared to fight, but there was no one in there. We ran through all the halls but the School had been abandoned and my fiancé was gone. I punched a whole in the wall.

We left and found a hotel and split into 3 groups of 2 for our rooms; Angel and Nudge, Gazzy and Iggy, and Fang and I. Fang and I didn't speak while we did our own thing. We shut off the lights. Fang only asked one thing before we fell asleep. "You love her don't you?"

"Ya, I love her so much." And we fell asleep.


	13. Chapter 13

1 year later….

Max POV

Ya, it has been a year since I was forced back to the School, or well Itex. A year since I last saw Alex. A year since I have had freedom. I know Alex and the Flock are looking for me, but I am losing hope fast. I don't know how to describe this past year. They haven't done any new tests or experiments. My powers are still the same, but my agility has grown and as that grows, my sanity declines.

I can kill without a second thought. I don't even care anymore. I know 8 different languages other than English; Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, French, Italian, Mandarin, and German. Learning those was hell. I was given a teacher for 5 hours each day and then a test for what I learned would be at the end of the lesson. Every time I got something wrong, I was electrocuted. I can run faster than anyone and have a higher stamina. I can kill someone with multiple different weapons, including a knife, sword, gun, whip, of course my katanas, and even a pen. I can make a weapon out of mostly anything, but also excel in hand-to-hand combat. They trained me to be an assassin.

I just got back from my third mission and fell onto my bed tired and bloody. Yes, I said bed. They decided to put me into an actually room with a working shower. It looks like an actual bedroom and has a bathroom. Since I am running missions for them, they decided to reward me. That and the fact it is easier to blend in when you don't look like you have been to Hell and back and smell like it too.

These missions basically have me go a kill scientists or people that are finding out about what Itex is really doing. Sometimes it got a little messy but I heal fast. Basically, I am turning into a monster. Jeb approves though! I mean, isn't that what I always wanted? Cue sarcasm. Basically, this year changed me.

I know you are wondering, why haven't I escaped? Well I have tried, but they have improved security and have become very cautious with me. Plus every time I try, they don't feed me until I almost die. Turns out I can go a week or two without food. I have failed every time to get out, so I have given up. Yup, the Maximum Ride has given up!

Anyways! This press has started picking up the pattern of these killings. They won't find the connection though. All they know is someone sneaks in slices everyones' throat, but one person is tied up and tortured. Of course, the person is the one I "interrogated" to see what they know and whom they told. There is no footage because I become invisible. I don't like doing these missions, but they put a collar on my neck and shock me if I do something wrong.

If Alex ever finds me, I don't think I could be with him. I have become a heartless killer. No one wants that and I don't want to hurt him. No one wants a monster.

* * *

Alex POV

God. It has been a year since I have seen Max. I am going nuts without her. The Flock has nice to me, even Fang. They know they messed up by kicking her out and now want to fix it by finding her. Fang even accepted that he has lost her. We are currently in a small town eating at a McDonalds. They have televisions set up around the place and the news is one. Out of curiosity, I start to watch it.

 _There has been another massacre by the invisible person. Everyone's throats were slit with precision and one scientist has been tortured. Usually there is an invisible person killing them, but it seems the murderer has shown its face. The person doing this is a female around the age of 19 or 20! She has black long straight hair and gold eyes! There also seems to be a collar around her neck. The image only lasts a few seconds and then she becomes invisible again. -_

I look at the Flock and they are wearing the same face as I am. Horror sinks into it as I recognize Max in the photo. "Why would she be working for them?" Gazzy says horrified.

"She's not." I say. They look at me incredulous, waiting for me to explain. "That collar she is wearing, I have seen it before. They had one on another experiment at the New York Institute. It is an electric collar and the shock apparently hurts."

Realization sinks into us. Max is being abused once again. "We should go to Dr. Martinez's house."

"Why?" Fang asks.

"If she has seen the news, she knows its Max. We should fill her in. And we need to actually rest up in a bed." They nod and we head off. We get there in 2 hours. I walk up to the door and knock. Ella opens the door and immediately hugs me. I am shocked for a second and then hug her back.

"I know I don't know you well but you make Max happy." She says in my ear. Once she lets go, we all walk in and go to the living room. Dr. Martinez and Ella join us. At first, it is silent, and then Max's mom speaks.

"Since Max isn't with you, I am assuming that I was correct in thinking that she is the invisible murderer?"

We nod our heads solemnly.

"What happened?" Ella asks with tears in her eyes.

Angel starts the story, "We were attacked on the way back to Alex's house. Alex almost died, but Ally healed him. Both were unconscious when we got to the house. After Ally woke up, the Flock left the next morning. We were 4 hours away when I hear Alex in my head. He sounded really panicked so we turned around and headed back. When we got there, Alex was pacing and Eraser were dead everywhere, but there was no Ally. We left to go find her at the School and Alex told us the story of how he met Max and that Ally was Max. She wasn't at the School and we have been looking for her ever since."

By the end of the story, everyone was in tears. I got up and hugged Dr. Martinez and Ella. Eventually, everyone but Fang and Iggy joined the hug. Then, there was a knock on the door. I looked at everyone and they had surprised looks on their faces. I walk through the kitchen and pick up a knife. When I opened the door, there stood a boy about Ella's age standing there. He had orange hair, gold eyes, and tan skin. "Is this Ella Martinez's house?" He asks.

"Yes. What do you need?" I say cautiously, something seems off about him but he also seems familiar. Then it hits me. "Bryce?" I ask, confused.

"Yeah. Have we met somehow?"

"You were in the New York Institute with me. Name's Alex." His face suddenly changes to realization.

"Alex! Long time no see!" We do a little hug. Once we separate, I ask, "What do you need with Ella?"

"Can I come in and explain?"

"Yeah. Sure." I step aside and lead him to the living room. Everyone looks at him and Ella says, "Bryce? What are you doing here?"

"Well, I am assuming that by the fact you all are crying, you already know that Max is the invisible killer?" We nod.

"Well, I want to help find her." He says determined.

"How do you know her?" I ask curiously.

"When Max went to our school, she found out I was part lion and wanted to help me. How do you all know the Maximum Ride, well except for Ella, I know she is your sister?" He asks.

"She is my fiancé." I say. Fang also replies. "We are her Flock." Bryce looks surprised. "You guys are the Flock? That is awesome! I have now met the most famous School experiments!"

"So you wanna help find her?" I ask. He nods. "We leave at 7 am tomorrow. Be here before then. You can still run fast right?" He nods with a smile on his face. "Good"

* * *

 **Okay... So I have no clue where this is going. I wasn't even planning on Max being captured for a year. They were supposed to find her last chapter or this chapter, but I decided to keep her captured. This is going to be fun to figure out!**


	14. Chapter 14

Alex POV

We left at 7:00. The Flock and I were flying, while Bryce was running below us. We decided to try the New York Institute. It took us 8 hours to get to downtown. We stopped to get food and are now walking around trying to fin it. That is when I saw the familiar building. Both Bryce and I froze. At first the Flock looked confused and then Fang asked, "This is it isn't it?"

We just nod. We walked to the park that was nearby and waited till night. We broke a window and walked in. Once we found a scientist, I put a force field around all of us, including her so no one could hear her. Angel read her mind and gasped. "She's here. We found her! Room 423!" We quickly knocked the whitecoat out and kept moving. Eventually we came to a hallway with only one room that had 2 Erasers on guard. That room was 423.

 _Max? Please say you are here._ I think desperately to whoever is in that room.

* * *

Max POV

I was wide-awake when I heard something in my head, well more like someone. _Max? Please say you are here._ I start crying tears of joy. I leap up and open the door. The two Eraser guards turn towards me and quickly kill them. I turn to my left and see Alex, Bryce and the Flock there. They all have shocked faces. Alex is the first to shake it and comes running towards me. We hugged and had a long kiss. I broke it when I realized two things. One, we are still in the School. Two, I am a monster. "Let's go." I say.

We start running through the hallways, letting out any experiments we see and killing any whitecoats. Once we made it out, we flew or ran to the park. I look at them and realize how horrible I am. The Flock and Alex start coming towards me but I put up a force field. Once they hit it, they are shocked. I rip off my shock collar and start to speak. "You guys shouldn't come near me."

"What are you talking about Max? Look we are sorry we thought you were working for the School and kicked you out. We shouldn't have done it." Fang said.

I smile sweetly at the Flock. "I already forgave you for that when I let you in our house. I understand how it looked. I am not scared of any of you. I am scared of hurting you. You probably know about the Invisible Killer. I kill without a thought. I can't risk hurting any of you."

"Max, you were forced to do it. There is no way you would ever hurt us. Please come with us." Alex said with a sad look on his face.

"Alex," I say as I start to cry. "I love you so much, but you don't know what they did to me. They made me enjoy it. I _enjoy_ killing people. I need to get my thoughts straight before I hurt anyone I love. Plus, the press knows what I look like. You think it was an accident that I appeared on that camera? I purposely did it so you would know. They will arrest me and could accuse you too. As much as I love all of you, you can't be near me."

Everyone is crying by now. "Max-" Alex starts again, but I cut him off.

"Alex, please, don't make this harder. I need you to stay with the Flock. Help keep them alive and take care of my mom and Ella. Go to school. Enjoy life. I will come back eventually. I need to deal with stuff first. Please don't come looking for me."

Alex looks defeated, as does everyone else. I turn invisible and take off flying. First, I will track done every Institute and destroy it. Then, I will turn myself in.

* * *

3 years… (Alex-23, Max,Fang,Iggy-22, Nudge,Ella,Bryce-19, Gazzy-16, Angel-14) Still MPOV

I have destroyed all the Schools and freed all the experiments. Now, I was I Washington, DC, and heading to the White House to speak with the President. I turned invisible and walked in. I went straight towards his office and then became visible. I knocked on the door and heard a come in. As soon as he saw me, the President asked, "Who are you?"

"That is why I am here. Can we speak? I promise I don't have any weapons, because one I passed through the metal detector and two, I don't want to go to jail."

"Okay. Please sit. Now tell me who you are."

"My name is Maximum Ride…" I proceeded to tell him the story of my life up until 4 years ago. "4 years ago I was captured again and taken to a different Institute. I was trained as an assassin. They put a shock collar on me and sent me on missions for them. I was able to turn invisible and slip in and kill everyone. If I didn't, I was almost killed when I got back or shocked. I am known as the Invisible Killer." The President tensed. "I am not here to hurt you. I was forced to do those first three missions. On the third mission, I purposely turned visible and was caught on camera so my family would know where I was. Once I was rescued, I went off on my own again. Every attack the Invisible Killer did after that was my own will. Those attacks were on all the Institutes that were experimenting with DNA. I have destroyed all of them. If you need proof, I have pictures."

"Please. Show me." I pulled out the pictures of the kids in the crates. The President started to get tears in his eyes. "Can I see your wings?" I nodded and showed him. "They are beautiful."

"Thank you, sir." I closed them and sat back down.

"So, why come to me? What do you need now?"

"I need to start my life and go back to my family. I came to you, because I knew you could do something about my name. I need my name to be cleared."

"I can do that. I'm guessing you don't want your name mentioned to the world as the killer?"

"No, you could make it anonymous. Can you help my family too?"

"I can fund whatever you need. I will pay for their college and school fees and make sure they get whatever they want"

I laugh. "The school fees should be great. Thank you so much, Mr. President."

"It is my honor. If you ever need anything, come here and tell them your name."

"Thank you. If you ever need me, you can find me. It has been an honor, Mr. President." With that I got up, shook hands with him and left. People gave me funny looks but I didn't care. I was going home to my family.

* * *

Alex POV

We listened to Max. We all went back to Mrs. Martinez house and everyone started going to school. The next year, Fang, Iggy, and I went to college. We were all separated, but we still visited everyone. This year, Ella, Nudge and Bryce went to college as well. Every holiday was spent at Valencia's house. I watched the news constantly, looking for any news about Max.

We all missed her dearly. I know she is still known as the Invisible Killer, but this time she is taking down the Institutes. I feel bad for not helping her, but she told us not to find her. As of right now, I am in my apartment watching the news. I see the president come on stage during the press conference he called. He started speaking, "I received an unexpected visitor the other day in my office. She told me her name and her story. She and her family grew up as experiments along as many others. Her family is 98% human and 2% bird. They have wings and can fly and many other things. They escaped, but were on the run. She was caught and forced to do missions for these scientists, or whitecoats as they call them. The media caught the pattern of these missions and called her the 'Invisible Killer'. She then escaped the Institute and went off on her own to track down and destroyed these Institutes. She freed all the experiments and killed the scientists."

One of the reporters asked, "What is her name?"

"I told her I would not mention it for her and her family's sake."

"Are these mutants dangerous?" Another asked.

"Yes. But this lady is on our side and is willing to help us. I believe many of the experiments follow her and admire her for freeing them. That is all. Thank you." He walked off the stage. I was left there dumbfounded. Max is done. She can come home! That is when I heard someone speak behind me.

"You know, the President was actually very understanding. Glad he kept me anonymous."

* * *

 **I don't know how long this story will be, but I know for sure there will be a few more chapters. I may keep writing this every once in a while, and also start a new one. Please review and post constructive criticism.**


	15. Chapter 15

Max POV

"Max," He says like a prayer. Then I am wrapped in a hug. He pulls away and studies my face. "I missed you so much!"

"I missed you too, Alex. You don't even know how happy I am that you and the Flock went to school."

"It has been an experience. I know I would have preferred to be by your side. Why didn't you let us?" He said with a sad face while his hand strokes my cheek. I sigh and take his hand and pull him over to his couch.

"Alex, while I was there at the School, the whitecoats tortured me into believing I was a monster and I was killing without a thought. I couldn't let you or the Flock get hurt by Itex or me. I knew I had to wrap everything up and get my thoughts under control by myself, but a day didn't go by that I didn't think about coming back and getting you." I look at him longingly.

"God, Max. Its just, it has been 3 years, and all I have heard is news about the 'Invisible Killer'. Every day I was wondering when and if my fiancé was coming home. Do you even want to get married anymore?"

"Yes! God, yes! I love you so much. These 3 years have been horrible without you. Of course I still want to get married, do you?"

"Yes." He said. I leap at him and kiss him. One thing led to another and it turned into a blissful reunion.

~TIME SKIP~

We were lying in his bed and talking about the past 3 years. "You know I need to go see everyone else right?" I say.

"Yeah. You wanna do it one by one or all together?" Alex says.

"Definitely one by one. I need to start with Fang too." He nods understandingly.

"Let me figure out what classes he has." He says as he reaches for his phone. 5 minutes later he sets it back down. "He is in California, but I know what his dorm looks like so I can teleport. He just has football practice so we can just go watch him."

"Alex?" He looks at me. "Can I do this alone? I think it has been 7 or 8 years since I had an actual conversation with him knowing who I am."

"Of course. I will teleport you to the stadium where they practice and then teleport back."

"Thank you." I say and kiss him.

"Now get some sleep. We leave early." And we go to sleep.

The next morning we get up, eat, and talk. Once it was time, we teleported to a tunnel. "Okay, so we are currently in the stadium. Remember, Fang goes by Nick Martinez here. I love you." Alex says.

"Love you too." We share a quick kiss and he teleports away. I start walking towards the end of the tunnel. Once I get out, I realize I am on the field. I see a bunch of guys running around on the field, while twice as much are on the sidelines. Most are wearing football gear while I few older fellas are wearing normal clothes and one is yelling at the players on the field. I realize the one yelling is the coach. I start walking toward the players on the side.

As I walking through, many of them turn and look at me weird, but I ignore them and keep searching for Fang. I am then stopped by one of the players. "Miss? What are you doing here?"

"I am looking for someone."

"And who might that be?"

"Nick Martinez."

"He is on the field. Why are you looking for him?"

"I am an old friend. I came to surprise him."

"Oh. Well you can wait here until they get a break." I nod and walk to the front of the crowd. The guy I was talking to followed me. "What is your name?" he asks.

"Max Ride." I say. "My name is Caleb. How do you know Nick?"

"We grew up together and then I left on bad terms 3 years ago. What do you know about him?" I ask.

"Well he is number 23 on the team over there. He is a really good player, really strong, but he is on edge all the time and keeps to himself. He doesn't have any friends and no one knows about his past. And we have learned not to sneak up on him. He tends to punch people a lot on instinct." I nod and watch number 23.

"He has a difficult past but he has always been quiet and strong. Though, I'm stronger." I say smirking. I see Caleb glance at me and shake his head, obviously not believing me. The coach called a break after Fang knock player 12 to the ground, hard. Nick started walking off the field and passed me without noticing me. I see the player he knocked down, coming towards him with his fists clenched and an angry expression on his face. I step in front of 12. "Get out of my way." He says. "No. You need to calm down." I say and give him my best glare. His face turns frightened and walks away. I turn around and walk towards Fang. His back was towards me. _Perfect._ I kick the back of his knees and he starts to fall back. I wrap my arms around his neck and get him in a headlock. He is struggling to pull my arms off. I release him and he gets up and turns around to punch, but I just grave his fist. "You have lost your touch, F-Nick. You should be happy I finished off Itex, otherwise you would be dead." I say smirking. His face turns to shock. "Max?" "Nice to see you too, Fang." He smiles and picks me up, twirling me. I see his teammates staring at me in shock.

Fang sets me down and ask, "Where have you been?" "I am sure you know if you have been keeping up with the news." I tell him. He gives me a sad smile. "News of the Invisible Killer is everywhere. But why are you here now?" He asks. Before I could answer, the coach interrupts.

"What is going on here?!" He asks. I look around and notice everyone is surrounding us. "Sir, this is an old friend of mine. She came to surprise me." Fang replies with a smile on his lips.

"Well, if she can make the emotionless Nick smile, she can come whenever she wants! What is your name?"

"Max Ride, sir." I say respectfully.

"Well, Max, the boys are about to do laps and finish off with exercise. You can come stand by me and wait, though."

"If it is alright by you, can I join them?"

"Not to be rude, but these boys work very hard and-" I cut him off by saying, "I can keep up." The coach looks at Fang and he nods before the coach says yes. F-Nick starts running while the others fall in behind him. I run to catch up to Fang. "I never took you as a football player." I tell him.

He smirks and says, "I needed somebody to hit and I am able to run. So. Why are you here _now_?"

"Well, you obviously didn't watch the presidents speech." He shakes his head. "After I finished taking out Itex and releasing the experiments, I snuck into the White House and spoke with him. I told him everything and he told the nation about the Invisible Killer is not bad. So I am free to do what I want! Oh! And he is going to pay for your school fees." By the time I am done explaining it to him, we are done with our laps and weren't even breaking a sweat while the other players were panting. Fang went out to the middle of the field and the players lined up in front of him. They started to do push ups and I followed.

"Max, I don't even know what to say. Thank you. But I have one question. What happened to all the experiments?" Fang says.

"I'll tell you later." I reply.


End file.
